Sewing-machine attachment



W. T. GENSHEEMER SEWING MACHINE ATTACH MENT 3 Sheets-Shwt K Filed Sept. 22 1948 ATTORNEY April 3, 1951 w. T. GENSHEEMER SEWING MACHINE ATTACHMENT 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 22, 1948 INVENTOR M M w m 5 W M 4 Y E N R o w A April 3, 1951 w. T. GENSHEIMER SEWING MACHINE ATTACHMENT 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Sept. 22, 1948 IN V EN TOR.

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call lateral. moved by a bar 25 which connects cross-head 24 with an oscillating arm 26 on the oscillating drive Patented Apr. 3, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SEWING-MACHINE ATTACHIVIENT William T. Gensheimer, New York, N. Y. Application September 22, 1948, Serial No. 50,490

8 Claims.

This invention is a device for sewing a row of spiral stitching and more particularly, since the sewing operation can be performed by a standard .sewing machine, this device relates more specifically to an attachment for sewing machines to enable spiral stitching to be sewed thereon. This invention is an improvement on my prior application, Serial No. 777,408, filed October 27,

It is an object of this'invention to provide a .device of the character described which will perform the functions of my prior application more specifically and which can be more readily atconnection with the accompanying drawings, in Which- Fig. l is a top plan view of the attachment, the casing being in section to show also the oscillating drive shaft of the sewing machine by which the sewing machine is operated.

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 22 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a section on the line 33 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the baseboard of the sewing machine with the attachment in place.

Fig. 5 is a plan of the garment element with the attachment as designed to make a brassire.

A case 20 carries an upright 2| on which is mounted a horizontal rod 23 on which there slides a transverse cross-head 24. This cross-head moves in a direction from front to back, which we shall call herein transverse, to distinguish from motion from side to side, which we shall This transversev cross-head 24 is shaft 27 of the machine. As shown, it is pivotally connected to the cross-head by a screw 28, while its other end is pivoted upon a screw 29 which is fixed to the oscillating arm. As shown, the oscillating arm has a slot 29a in which the screw 23 is slidable, and a nut 29?) holds the screw in any adjusted position, clamping upon the oscillating arm but not upon the bar 25 in order to permit adjustment of the amount of throw and hence the amount of feed of the crosshead.

the axis of the shaft 35.

A lateral track 38 supports a laterally moving lateral cross-head 3|, the latter being carried on ball bearings 32 held in a cage 32a. This lateral cross-head 3| has a forwardly extending horizontal flange 33 on which is mounted a ratchet clutch 34. This clutch has an upwardly extending drive shaft 35 for the clutch and a downwardly extending shaft 35 on which there slides a frame 31. This frame 37 carries a pair of meshing bevel gears 38 and 39, the first of which is splined to shaft 36 and the latter of which is rigidly connected to or integral with a worm wheel 40, being mounted to rotate on a shaft 4| carried by frame 31.

The shaft 35 is pierced and through it there extends an operating arm 42, the end of which is pivoted to transverse cross-head 24 at 43, so that the shaft 35 is oscillated about its axis by the front and back motion of the cross-head 24 through an angle substantially inversely proportionate to the distance between the pivot 43 and This oscillating movement of shaft 35, through the ratchet clutch, is transformed into an intermittent unidirectional movement of shaft 36 and hence of worm wheel 40.

The rack 44 is mounted on the bed of the machine in position to be engaged by worm wheel '40, so that lateral cross-head 3| is moved to the an eye through which the finger 43 extends.

Thus by rotating the knob 470'. the frame 37 can e raised disengaging gear 4i from rack 44, permitting the head 3| to be moved from side to side at will.

Mounted upon the head 3! and extending upward above the bed of the sewing machine is a strap 50, carrying an arm Eton which is mounted a pin 52 in position to move in a line to and from the needle of the machine as the head 3% moves from side to side. The parts are so proportioned that when the head is at the maximum position to the right, the pin will be spaced from the needle the same distance that the axis of shaft '35 is from the axis of pivot 43.

*A guide 55 sliding in a sleeve 54 fastened to the machine, extends inwardly from the outside 3 of the machine and has an opening to fit over pin 52.

In use, a circular piece of cloth 56 inserted beneath the needle has its center 51 impaled on pin 52, while the head 3| and pin 52 are in the extreme left hand position. Thereafter, as the machine sews a line of stitching, the pin 52 constrains the cloth to move in a circular path 58 about the pin as a center. Since, however, the pin moves to the right, at a rate inversely proportional to the distance between the pin and the, needle, the line of stitching will be a spiral and the rows will be uniformly spaced.

With the head at the left in position as stated, the needle is very close to the' center of the swatch, at which point the sewing is started. As the sewing continues the swatch is turned about the pin 52. Each operationpf the stitching mech anism, however, also operates the arm 26 and through the bar reciprocates the cross-head 24 in a front to back direction. This, carries with it the pivot end of the arm 2. The shaft 35, however, is fixed against motion in a front to back direction and thereby serves as a pivot about which the arm 52 is oscillated by the reciprocation of the cross-head 26. This oscillation of the arm 42 operates a ratchet 34 by an amount equal to the angle of oscillation and thus moves the head 3| to carry the pin 52 further away from the needle. This motion of the needle to the right as the stitching continues thus becomes slower the further the pin 52 gets away from the needle because of the lengthening of the arm between the pivot 43 and the shaft 35.

To facilitate the circular feeding, the reciprocating feeder finger 59, which bears up against the cloth, preferably comprises a single point or line engaging the goods, to permit the ready turning of the fabric beneath the foot.

Since certain changes may be made in the above construction and different embodiments of the invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

It is also to be understood that the following claims are intended to cover all of the generic and specific features of the invention herein described, and all statements of the scope of the invention which as a matter of language might be said to fall therebetween.

I claim:

1. A device for spiral sewing on a sewing machine having the usual needle, a base, an oscillating drive shaft and a feed mechanism beneath said base, comprising a casing for the device having vertical supports for supporting the machine base spaced above it, a laterally moving crosshead within said casing, a bracket attached to the cross-head extending forward and upward through the side of the casing around the front edge of the base and having a fiat arm extending over the upper surface of the base, carrying a pin movable in alignment with the needle, and means operated by the oscillating arm to move the head away from the needle at a rate inversely proportional to the distance of the pin from the needle.

2. A device for spiral sewing on a sewing machine having the usual needle, a base, an oscillating drive shaft and a feed mechanism beneath said base. comprising a casing for the device havill) ing vertical supports for supporting the machine base spaced above it, a laterally extending track within said casing having ball grooves on its sides, a cross-head having a channel to receive said track having mating ball grooves, a cage for retaining antifriction balls in said grooves, a bracket fixed upon said cross-head extending forward through the side walls of the casing and upward around the edge of the base of the machine, having a flat arm extending over the top face of the base carrying a pin movable in alignment with the needle, a bracket fast upon and extending upwardly within said casing having a transverse shaft thereon, connections between said oscillating shaft and said transverse crosshead to drive the latter from the former, ratchet driven mechanism upon the cross-head for driving the lateral cross-head along the track, and a lever slidingly connecting the transverse crosshead with the ratchet.

3. A device for spiral sewing on a sewing machine having a needle, a base and oscillating drive shaft, comprising an arm carrying a pin in lateral alignment with the needle, a cross-head to which said pin is attached, a track on which said cross-head may slide laterally, a rack parallel to said track, a gear carried by a frame upon said cross-head, said frame having vertical movement whereby it may move into and out of engagement with said rack, means connecting said gear with the oscillating shaft whereby the os cillation of th shaft will rotate the gear relative to the rack, a control shaft mounted on said cross-head having an arm engaging said frame to raise said frame to disengage said gear from said rack.

4., A device for spiral sewing on a sewing machine having a needle, a base and oscillating drive shaft, comprising an arm carrying a pin in lateral alignment with the needle, a laterally extending trackhaving ball grooves on its sides, a cross-head having a channel to receive said track having mating ball grooves, a cage for retaining antifriction balls in said grooves, a rack parallel to said track, a gear carried by a frame upon said cross-head, said frame having vertical movement whereby it may move into and out of engagement with said rack, means connecting said gear with the oscillating shaft whereby the oscillation of the shaft will rotate the gear relative to the rack, a control shaft mounted on said cross-head having an arm engaging said frame to raise said frame to disengage said gear fromsaid rack.

5. A device for spiral sewing on a sewing machine which has the usual needle bed and a feed mechanism having an oscillating drive shaft, said device comprisin in combination a laterally extending track beneath said bed, a lateral cross-head slidable on said track, a vertical shaft having a rotary drive ratchet and means for moving said cross-head along said track, a transverse guide fixed beneath said bed, a transverse cross-head mounted on said guide, a member for connecting said transverse cross-head to said oscillating drive shaft to reciprocate said transverse cross-head, an arm pivoted to said transverse cross head and sliding in a bearing in said ratchet, a bar above said bed rigidly supported from said lateral cross-head carrying a pin in alignment with the needle.

6'. A device for spiral sewing on a sewing machine which has the usual needle bed and a feed mechanism having an oscillating drive shaft, said device comprising in combination a laterally 5 extending track beneath said bed, a lateral crosshead slidable on said track, a vertical shaft having a rotary drive ratchet and means for moving said cross -head along said track, transverse guide fixed-beneath said bed, a transverse cross-head mounted on said guide, a member for connecting said transverse cross-head to said oscillating drive shaft to reciprocate said transverse cross-head, an arm pivoted to said transverse cross-head and sliding in a bearing in said ratchet, a bar above said bed rigidly supported from said lateral cross-head carrying a pin in alignment with the needle, said feed mechanism having a contact feed member engaging the work in a single line.

7. A device according to claim 5, in which the means for moving the cross-head along the track comprises a laterally extending arm fixed to the bed and a worm Wheel driven by said vertical shaft.

8. A device for spiral sewing, comprising in combination, a sewing machine having a needle, a base and an oscillating drive shaft, a bar extend- REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,259,324 Weiss Mar. 12, 1918 20 1,462,168 Denemark 'July 1'7, 1923 1,470,932 Perras Oct. 16, 1923 1,906,317 Grieb May 2, 1933 

